Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak briefly in relation to some comments, particularly Senator Xenophon’s. In relation to the contribution by Senator Brown—and I am sure the Leader of the Government in the Senate will expand on this more—who leads the largest contingent on the crossbenches, he is to be congratulated for the responsibility that he has shown in this debate and for how he has handled the negotiations to date, and the government acknowledges that.

It is interesting in that we have an extraordinary situation—and I hope that Senator Brown will understand the spirit in which this comment is made—where Senator Brown and the Greens are demonstrating more economic responsibility than the opposition. It should be said that perhaps the opposition senators could go back to their electorates and explain why it is that the Greens have demonstrated more economic responsibility in this economic crisis than the Liberal Party and the National Party, because that is the reality of the situation.